This invention relates generally to aspirating equipment utilized during surgical procedures. More specifically, the present invention relates to a support for suction tubing forming a portion of a surgical aspiration system.
In the U.S. alone there are millions of surgical procedures performed annually. A majority of surgical procedures require the use of an endotracheal tube to ensure a patent airway during the perioperative, operative and post operative periods. Most often the endotracheal tube is removed in the operating room as the patient emerges from anesthesia. To ensure that the patient does not aspirate unwanted material such as blood, mucus, stomach contents or other foreign material into the lower respiratory tract (any structures proximal to the vocal cords), it is imperative that a reliable and readily available method of airway aspiration be present.
In operating rooms, intensive care units and emergency rooms, the ability to aspirate and remove bodily fluids is of paramount importance. During the induction and emergence from general anesthesia, as well as other altered states of consciousness, a patient is at an increased risk to aspirate stomach contents, blood or other foreign material into the lungs. Typically a vacuum system is provided to minimize the risk that a patient will aspirate such fluids.
In a typical operating room the vacuum system is connected to aspirating equipment including a vacuum canister provided for collection and disposal of aspirated bodily fluids. Suction tubing is connected to an inlet to the vacuum canister and extends to the patient. The distal end of the suction tubing is attached to the proximal end of a suction catheter which is configured for insertion into the upper airway of the patient. When not in use, the suction catheter is often either stuffed into a section of an anesthesia machine, placed under the patient mattress, or left dangling from a wall or in another location that is inaccessible when needed. Too often the suction tubing and catheter are left to fall on the floor of the operating room.
Additionally, in use the typical vacuum system is left on during the perioperative and through the postoperative period. The distal end of the suction catheter typically has one or more apertures which, due to the air being drawn therethrough, creates a noticeable, bothersome hissing sound that is stopped by pinching the suction tubing or catheter themselves, or by turning off the vacuum system completely. Obviously, if the system is turned off it is not available for immediate use. However, there has been no prior satisfactory means whereby operating room personnel could properly position the suction catheter adjacent to the patient and, simultaneously, pinch off the tubing or catheter to stop the flow of air therethrough and minimize the hissing sound.
Accordingly, there has been a need for a novel vacuum system for use during surgical procedures, which is capable of properly positioning the suction tubing and catheter adjacent to a patient in a reliable and safe manner. The components of the vacuum system should all be easy to manufacture, relatively inexpensive, and adaptable for use with the standard vacuum systems provided in typical medical care facilities. Moreover, each of the components of the vacuum system having any contact whatsoever with patient bodily fluids must be disposable. Further, there is a need for a support for suction tubing forming a portion of a surgical aspiration system, having a construction allowing convenient placement adjacent to a patient, preferably on or near the operating table, capable of having suction tubing securely held therein, but which prevents removal of the suction tubing therefrom. Moreover, such a support should provide convenient means for pinching off the suction tubing, as desired, to minimize the hissing sound of air being drawn through the suction catheter. The present invention fulfills these needs and provides other related advantages.